Dunlop #ForeverForward title to be decided at Valencia MotoGP

The FIM Moto2™ and Moto3™ World Champions may have already been crowned, but there is still one Trophy to be claimed at the final 2018 MotoGP round in Valencia, Spain, this weekend.

The Dunlop #ForeverForward Award, now in its 4th year, is a prize for the rider who has made the most forward progress in the races across the season. The league table covers the Moto2™ and Moto3™ categories.

Last year, Andrea Migno was crowned as the Dunlop Forever Forward Champion after his epic season of overtaking moves during an intense year of racing. Migno followed in the tyre tracks of 2015 winner Philipp Oettl and 2016’s top overtaker, Fabio Di Giannantonio.

Five riders in contention

This season, there’s 5 riders in contention and one of them is Migno. The Italian Moto3™ rider once again heads the rankings with 118 places gained during the races, proving his exceptional racecraft. His impressive charge from 26th to 13th in last month’s Australian GP was only surpassed by his 28th to 11th ride in Thailand.

On equal points is Moto2™ race winner Miguel Oliveira. A few storming rides in midseason, including 17th to 2nd in Catalunya, promoted him to the top of the league table. However, if he maintains his recent improved form in qualifying it may make it harder for him to gain places at Valencia.

Dennis Foggia was on course to get to the top of the rankings, but his non-finish in Malaysia puts him 17 positions behind Oliveira and equal with fellow Moto3™charger Jakub Kornfeil. Some feel Kornfeil deserves additional points for his YouTube-trending leap at Le Mans, but the judges have declared the Dunlop #ForeverForward Award is scored on the number of positions gained, not the style of the overtake.

The fifth rider in contention is Moto2™ front runner Joan Mir, but he would need to start on the back row in Valencia and win the race, with the four riders above not making any forward progress.

Wim Van Achter, Motorsport Manager at Dunlop Motorcycle Tyres said: “The fact that 5 riders are still in contention shows that Moto2™ and Moto3™ provides some of the closest racing in the world. Dunlop are proud to be a long term partner to both championships and we chose to create this award to highlight the incredible amount of overtaking in these categories.”